In the mountains and forests, thousands of defeated soldiers fled like headless flies.
Xiang Yang can no longer control so many of the injured, lost, fallen, stragglers, and runaways.
The most important thing now is to escape for one's life. When one is in an extremely dangerous situation, the only thing a person can think of subconsciously is to escape for one's life.
All rationality and thinking were completely forgotten at this moment.
The injured Xiang Yang was supported by his own soldiers and rushed out of the encirclement crazily, running rapidly towards the north.
For an entire hour, he ran no matter how far he ran, and there were fewer and fewer followers around him.
When it was daylight, Xiang Yang fell weakly to the ground and gasped for breath. When he looked back, there were only a dozen soldiers left behind him.
Of course, he was also sure that the nearby jungle was probably full of his remaining soldiers, but everyone was now scattered.
It has been an hour since the breakout. According to the current clock, it is almost seven o'clock.
We were already exhausted from the days of traveling. From the fierce battle last night until now, everyone had almost no food or water, and many soldiers even fell to the ground due to dehydration.
Several soldiers dragged their tired bodies and picked some wild fruits to share with everyone.
Handing the biggest and reddest one to Xiang Yang, the soldier leader sat down tiredly and said slowly to him: "Eat some, young master."
"My subordinate estimates that as long as we keep heading north, we should be able to get out within half a month. If we are lucky, we may be able to meet the lord's reinforcements."
"Hmm..." Xiang Yang hummed, picked up the fruit and took a bite. The sour taste made him frown.
After pondering for a moment, he finally expressed his doubts: "I don't know how my father is doing... Old thief Nangong said that my father is dead, but I don't know whether it is true or not."
"Of course it's fake, young master!" The leader's predecessor was a direct disciple of the Liquan Sect. He was extremely loyal to the Xiang family. At this time, he was already loyal to Xiang Yang.
Seeing what he said, he quickly comforted him: "Think about it... My lord, his martial arts skills are extraordinary. Even if he is really defeated, there is still no problem in escaping."
"Nan Yanxi is surrounded by nothing more than Nangong Wenjian and the eunuch named Zhou, who can barely fight with the lord."
"But now you have also seen that one of them is deep in the mountains and the other is far away in Zhongzhou. It is impossible for them to come here."
"And even if they do come, they can't defeat the Lord together, but if they want to retreat, there is nothing they can do."
"So... the old thief Nangong must have told this matter deliberately to upset the morale of our army! Young Master, please don't fall into the trap!"
Listening to this reasonable analysis, Xiang Yang nodded slowly: "Yes...but why hasn't father sent anyone to contact us after so long?"
"Well... I think... maybe it's because it's not easy for them there either."
The leader of the soldiers pondered for a moment and slowly analyzed: "Perhaps... there is also an ambush on the Lord's side. Now that things have happened, we have to consider whether the military advisor's expedition plan has failed."
"And the Ming army's massive retreat on the southwestern front is just a trick to lure us into taking the bait."
"If that's the case... Then the Lord's side is also not optimistic! Maybe... they have too much to take care of themselves."
After hearing this, Xiang Yang felt a little calmer and sighed: "Hey... this Nan Yanxi is really cunning... and he is also very lucky."
After saying that, he suddenly thought of something again. After thinking about it again and again, he finally said: "If...I mean if..."
"If something happens to the master...what should we do?"
As soon as these words came out, all the soldiers looked at each other in shock. For a moment, they didn't know what to say, and they didn't dare to say anything.
Xiang Yang smiled and comforted: "It doesn't matter, everyone. If there are no outsiders now, we are also making plans for the future."
"Some preparations... It's not a bad thing. Let's discuss it casually!"
Seeing Xiang Yang say this, everyone felt relieved. After thinking for a moment, the leader said: "Go back to the young master..."
"We all hope that your lord is fine, but after all, victory or defeat is a common matter for military strategists, and there is no guarantee that some unexpected situations will occur."
"If the lord is really defeated, even... even... uh... that!"
"My subordinates believe that if these two situations arise, no matter what happens to the lord, we should shrink the front line to the north!"
"Oh? Why?" Xiang Yang nodded and motioned for him to continue.
The leader of the soldiers understood and continued: "Because...if it is the above two situations, it can only mean that our army has been defeated!"
"All the main forces have been lost, and it will be impossible to fight the enemy again in a short time."
"Judging from the current situation, the southern territory of Great Yan has been completely lost. If the lord is defeated again, the central area of Great Yan will be in danger."
"If this is the case, then only a few states in the northern border of Dayan and tens of thousands of garrison troops will be left."
"Let's go to the northern border, shrink the front line, and recruit some strong men. Maybe we can even form a team."
"It's naturally impossible to fight the Ming army in the field, but if we defend the city, we should be able to withstand one or two."
"That makes sense." Upon hearing this, Xiang Yang immediately agreed.
Under the current situation, if his father's West Route Army was also defeated, then retreating to the north would be the most appropriate and his last retreat.
"But what can we do... A large part of the country has been lost, so what's the use of temporarily holding on to this corner? It's just drinking poison to quench thirst."
At this time, Xiang Yang had somewhat lost his confidence, but this was indeed the case. It was really hard not to feel this kind of frustration in response to this repeated failure.
Seeing him like this, the leader of the soldiers seemed to have some ideas. He said to Xiang Yang: "Young Master, please don't be discouraged... As long as the person is here, everything else is a small problem."
"This is what my subordinates think. If...if it's true, if my old master dies on the battlefield, it will be an honor even though he is defeated!"
"But we still have to take the next retreat. My subordinate's idea is... you can lead your troops back to the north, and then find a way to form an alliance with the Lin brothers."
"After all, it is clear that Nan Yanxi wants to dominate the world, and these Lin brothers are the legitimate descendants of the Dayan royal family after all. I don't believe that Nan Yanxi will let them live well!"
"As for the Lin brothers, although they are forced to bow their heads now due to the powerful power of the Ming Dynasty, they are probably still in panic all day long."
"Let's retreat to the north and form an alliance with them to fight against the Ming Dynasty together. Maybe these two brothers will agree."
"This is worth a try." Xiang Yang gnawed on the fruit and thought carefully: "Brothers of the Lin family, the so-called surrender to the Ming Dynasty is just a temporary measure."